Essential Qualities of an Effective Leader

April 12, 2021

Good morning! It was the perfect dictionary definition of April showers with ~2.83″ accumulating in our yard over the last several days. While watching and enjoying Regina King’s One Night in Miami I found myself thinking, “This is more like a play than a movie.” Marveling once again at my ignorance when it comes to culture, it WAS a play — long before it was a movie. “I must have flowers, always, and always.”  (Monet) Did you grow them, Claude, or did someone nurture and cultivate them FOR you? How many heart attacks did you suffer during the final nine of The Masters?

Hemingway

• Hemingway… how do you react and respond?!
  • Let’s start with Tom Hughes’ admonition, “History is the greatest lie.”
  • Then, benefiting from the remarkable research and storytelling talents of Ken Burns and Lynn Novick we can learn the so-called facts from 360+ different directions, each of those directions an incomplete glimpse into the truth.
  • Then, we have to sort it all out, or be prepared to live with inconsistencies, never knowing, never completely understanding.
  • A healthy never-ending curiosity might be the best approach to history.
  • Hemingway was a deeply flawed human, as perhaps we all are, but maybe some more than others.
  • Reminds me of the doctrine of there being three kinds of people:  Good, No Good, and No Damn Good.
  • If we had Ken Burns’ courage, patience, and persistence — and Lynn Novick’s collaborative curiosity — we might benefit as a society.
  • Kate Hepburn might have said it best in The Philadelphia Story, “The best time to make up your mind about somebody is never.”

• Where is Artificial intelligence headed and where will it take us — and will we go willingly or unwillingly?

Emily Dickinson

• Are you a student or a scholar of Emily Dickinson?
  • I want to learn from you.
  • She might be as complicated and as fascinating as Ernie.
  • In her poem, did she misspell it’s or did the archivist/ biographer/ librarian do it?!

A Route of Evanescence, (1489)
BY EMILY DICKINSON
A Route of Evanescence,
With a revolving Wheel –
A Resonance of Emerald
A Rush of Cochineal –
And every Blossom on the Bush
Adjusts it’s tumbled Head –
The Mail from Tunis – probably,
An easy Morning’s Ride 

Essential Qualities of an Effective Leader

• More and more I’ve come to believe curiosity is among the essential qualities and characteristics of an effective leader. (To learning about effective leadership, checkout what we do here at Without a Vision.)
  • McKinsey explains it with different language than I, but it has much deeper pockets and more experience.
    • The most fundamental skill is intentional learning.  (What does that mean?  I think it means choosing and wanting to learn)
      • Unlock intentionality (Develop and sustain the habit – you’ve gotta wanna learn)
      • Adopt a growth mindset (You’ve gotta wanna get better – stronger – healthier – happier)
      • Feed your curiosity (Search for information – engage mentors – hang around people smarter than you)
      • Set small, clear goals  (Going to the moon?  Take it a step at a time)
      • Remove distractions  (Stop sorting your pens – stay on the right path – do the important things first)
      • Seek feedback  (The things we measure get done)
      • Practice deliberately  (Wanna get better at golf?  Don’t practice tennis)
      • Reflect regularly  (“The unexamined life is not worth living” – Ignatius and others)
• Whether you serve on a multi-billion dollar company’s Board or a small local non-profit, the information in this article is timely and useful.
  • I recommend setting aside a few minutes to read it and to reflect on its meaning for you.
  • How Boards Can Make Better Decisions